Rise in Psychiatric Prescriptions With NOS Diagnosis
A “not otherwise specified” (NOS) diagnosis is often used when an individual may have some symptoms related to a psychiatric diagnosis but does not meet enough criteria to warrant a particular diagnosis. A new study, published online ahead of print in Psychiatric Services, reveals that the proportion of mental health visits resulting in such NOS diagnoses rose to nearly fifty percent, and that these diagnoses do not result in more conservative psychiatric drug prescriptions.
Type of Treatment for Depression is Less Important than Engagement
An international team of researchers (including Irving Kirsch) found in a review "of 62 pivotal antidepressant trials consisting of data from 13,802 depressed patients"...
International Research Team Proposes a New Taxonomy of Mental Disorders
New data interpreted to suggest a hierarchical, dimensional system of mental disorders will aid future research efforts and improve mental health care.
FDA Approves Another Antipsychotic for Children
The FDA has approved the atypical antipsychotic Saphris (asenapine) for use in children on the basis of one trial.
Nineteen New Zoloft Birth Defect Lawsuits Filed
Nineteen defective drug product liability cases against Prizer have been filed in West Virginia state court by mothers alleging that their children suffered from...
Half of Americans Believe in a Medical Conspiracy
Research published this week in JAMA Internal Medicine finds that about half of American adults believe in at least one medical conspiracy theory. "Science in...
Sixty Percent of Canadian Clinical Trials Broke Rules
Canadian physicians and psychiatrists regularly do not report serious negative side effects during their clinical trials of drugs, according to an investigation by the...
Shooting the ADHD Messenger
A paper in the Journal of Contemporary Psychotherapy chronicles the history of MiA blogger Gretchen LeFever Watson's effort to improve ADHD treatment in southeastern...
Child Abuse/Psychosis Link Not Genetic
Although psychosis is more common in the parents of people with psychosis than those without, the difference cannot be attributed to genetics, research from...
Antidepressants Do Work Well — We’ve Simply Been Evaluating Them Incorrectly
Not an Onion Study: SSRI antidepressants did consistently outperform placebo in clinical trials, researchers discovered, so long as 16 of the 17 questions about patients' feelings are ignored.
Series on Anti-Psychiatry and Critical Theory for World Mental Health Day
To coincide with World Mental Health Day on October 10th, 2015, Verso Books, the largest independent and radical publishing house released a series of blogs on mental health and critical and antipsychiatry. The posts include pieces on R.D. Laing, colonialism, women’s oppression, delusions and art, “The Happiness Industry,” and social and institutional oppression.
Convicted Murderer Blames Chantix; Appeals Judge’s Refusal to Subpoena Pfizer
Army Pfc. George D.B. MacDonald, convicted in 2009 of stabbing and slashed a sleeping recruit whom he did not know, is appealing his judge's...
Study Identifies Link Between Antidepressants and Newborn Hypertension
A new study, published in the American Journal of Physiology, investigates how the use of antidepressants during pregnancy can lead to a life-threatening lung...
New “Binge Eating Disorder” Drug Generating Controversy
The US Food and Drug Administration has expanded the approved uses of an ADHD drug to make it the first-ever drug
treatment for "binge-eating disorder."
Antidepressants Not a ‘One Size Fits All’ Solution, Researchers Find
The largest ever study of the thoughts and reactions of antidepressant users reveals that many people have vastly different understandings and experiences of the...
Common Sleep Aid Dangerous Due to Wide Misuse
Zolpidem, the active ingredient in many common sleep aids, accounts for more emergency hospital visits than any other psychoactive drug.
Rates of Opioid Use Remain High Among US Adolescents
Researchers investigate trends in opioid use, prescriptions, misuse, and access reported by adolescents and young adults.
Researchers Develop New Model for Understanding Depression
Acknowledging that current depression treatments are failing many people, researchers from Michigan State and MIT have developed a new model for understanding how multiple psychological, biological, social and environmental factors contribute to depression.
California Senate Panel Investigates Drugging of Foster Kids
The chair of a state Senate committee told a public hearing that California’s foster care system “has grown more addicted to mind-altering medication."
Antidepressant Withdrawal Is Common and Debilitating
Those using antidepressants long-term were more likely to experience withdrawal and to have severe withdrawal symptoms.
What Is the Risk of Permanent Sexual Dysfunction from Antidepressants?
Males taking antidepressants were at 100 times the risk of erectile dysfunction compared with the healthy population and more than three times the risk even after controlling for other variables.
Patients Express Anger at Doctors’ Ignorance About Antidepressant Withdrawal Effects
Antidepressant users share their frustrations towards a healthcare system that overprescribes but is ill-equipped to support with discontinuation and withdrawal symptoms.
America Becoming Divided Nation of Have-more and Have-less Mental Health Care?
A report and national map showed which US states have been implementing new Medicaid provisions that buttress mental health care access, and which states haven't.
“Flimsy Evidence” for Esketamine as Depression Treatment
A new article documents the “flimsy evidence” behind the recent FDA approval of the party drug esketamine for the treatment of depression.
Antidepressants, Antipsychotics, and Benzos All Increase Suicide Attempts in New Study
In a study of people with borderline personality disorder, only ADHD stimulants were associated with a decrease in suicide.
